Page 39 of Grave Flowers
“No. She’s gone.” Raw grief flashed through his face, as though I’d cut back the fragile skin grown over a deep cut. Hearing that his mother was dead made me see my own mother lying limp in the garden, as though his experience were a cruel hook that dragged up mine.
“It sorrows me to hear it,” I murmured.
“Better this way,” he said.
“Better?”
“She … had an unhappy life. We were very poor, and she worked in a brothel in Pingere. It was run by a cruel man, and she was often visited by an even crueler one.” He clutched the book I’d given him tightly. “So I find myself angry with time. I wish I’d been older sooner. Stronger sooner. I could’ve saved her if I’d grown fast enough. But I didn’t. She died when I was nine.”
A well of compassion rose in me, longing to pour over him and wash away the pain. I, too, knew what it was like to hold the burden of your mother’s death. It only grew heavier over time, pain settling in like old age to weaken your bones.
“What did you do after she passed?” I asked gently.
“I ran off. Came to Acus and learned to read at the free classes offered in the monasterium until I got hired at the royal stables. Now I spend my time reading as much as I can and avoiding Prince Aeric’s rehearsals… . They often become like court parties because the actors like to drink. Do you enjoy reading, Princess?”
“I admit I do not,” I said. It was true. Book learning was a privilege, even more so in Radix, where many commoners couldn’t read. Still, I’d never developed the love.
“By the Family, I don’t know how we shall ever be friends,” Yorick teased.
“It only means there are more books for you,” I said. “I’m happy to give you many.”
“And I’m happy to accept. In exchange, I’m yours forever and ever.”
I took a breath. Now was the time. I needed to request Yorick’s assistance.
“As it so happens, I might need you tonight.” It was hard to sound calm. The weight of my task rushed to the forefront of my mind. “At midnight, in the garden. If anything changes, I’ll let you know, but will you meet me there?”
Yorick angled his head, causing shadows to pool in the hollows beneath his cheekbones and the sockets of his eyes. They hid his teardrops. Only two small ovals of light reflected off his pupils. I thought he might ask my purpose. Instead, he bowed deeply. When he straightened, his face was somber. It was understandable. It was no small thing to help a Radixan princess in her private affairs. Such things could go wrong. They could end in death.
Resolve settled over me. I would make certain Yorick was protected, no matter what happened.
“Midnight,” Yorick said. “I’ll be there.”
On my way back to my chambers, Sindony intercepted me.
“The prince is having a king-in-council meeting,” she said. “He asks if you might wish to join.”
A king-in-council meeting. I nodded eagerly. I could witness the politics of Acus playing out before my own eyes. “Yes, please show me the way.”
I was led up a flight of stairs to the throne room. I smiled, thinking of Yorick’s magical room beneath it. The throne room was a much more sober place than the flamboyant ballroom, though the thrones were resplendent. Delicate prongs formed rays around the backs. They were fashioned after sewing needles but looked like swords. Ropes of gems fed through their loops in an imitation of thread.
Both thrones were empty. Warily, I settled into the left-hand throne, assuming it was for the consort. While Aeric was missing, the rest of Acus’s governing bodies were assembled, personified in three stodgy men, their positions denoted by their gold pins. The lord high treasurer’s pin was a gold coin, the full general’s pin was a sword, and the head monasticte’s pin was a sewing needle in reference to Acus’s holy gifting. A few moments later, the doors opened. I looked up, thinking it was Aeric. Instead, Queen Gertrude and Prince Lambert joined us.
“Where is Prince Aeric?” Prince Lambert asked, dragging up two chairs from the room’s perimeter, one for him and one for Queen Gertrude.
No one knew. The king-in-council was missing its king. Awkward silence descended as we sat, waiting. How could Aeric be late, especially when he’d invited me to come? I frowned. Perhaps he was trying to use lateness as a statement, but by the Family, I couldn’t see the benefit. It made him appear disinterested in his own rule and gave others time to speak without him.
“I think we should begin,” Queen Gertrude said. She regarded the council evenly. However, her gaze skipped right over me.
“Without the prince?” the full general asked.
“I can relay our discussions to my nephew later,” Prince Lambert said, reaching over to take Queen Gertrude’s hand. She allowed it. “And I think I can guide our time accordingly. I am, after all, the late king’s brother. Aeric was raised at the monasterium, but I’ve lived at court my entire life.”
“It’s true. You know our ways intimately,” the lord high treasurer said. His agreeability caught my attention. Several gold rings adornedhis fingers. They had the shine of new alloy and didn’t have a single nick or scratch from use. Had Prince Lambert bribed him for support to prepare the court to accept him as king once Aeric was dead? Queen Gertrude had just received access to her family’s wealth. Clearly, it was being put to use.
“It is not uncommon for a crown prince to spend his formative years at a monasterium,” the head general pointed out. “I recall King Claudius wishing that Prince Aeric be raised apart from the lavish lifestyle of court so he might hone his virtue first.”
“Yes, my brother did say such things,” Prince Lambert said. A muscle in his cheek twitched, but he spoke smoothly. “I think he failed to realize the impact of keeping a young man locked away with nothing but prayers to pass the time. It’s no wonder Prince Aeric has plundered the palace’s wine cellars, now that they are at his disposal.”
